Growth and photorefractive properties of Mg:Ce:Cu:LiNbO3 crystals grown by Czochralski method

In this paper, photorefractive properties of Mg:Ce:Cu:LiNbO₃ crystals were studied. The crystals doped with different concentration of Mg ions have been grown by the Czochralski method. Mg concentrations in grown crystals were analyzed by an inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP‐OE/MS). The crystal structures were analyzed by the X‐ray powder diffraction (XRD), ultraviolet‐visible (UV‐Vis) absorption spectra and infrared (IR) transmitatance spectra. The photorefractive properties of crystals were experimentally studied by using two‐beam coupling. In this experiment we determined the writing time, maximum diffraction efficiency and the erasure time of crystals samples with He‐Ne laser. The results showed that the dynamic range (M/#), sensitivity (S) and diffraction efficiency (η) were dependent on the Mg doping concentration, and the Mg(4.58mol%):Ce:Cu:LiNbO₃ crystal was the most proper holographic recording media material among the six crystals studied in the paper. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Mesostructured crystals: Growth processes and features

Sophisticated architectures consisting of oriented small crystalline blocks are widely observed in biological and biomimetic minerals. Here, mesostructured crystals are categorized in a new family of crystalline states as intermediate between faceted single crystals and polycrystals that are random arrangements of small grains. A variety of hierarchical architectures, such as mesocrystals consisting of isolated nanoblocks, granular textures of biominerals, and helical crystals, are included in the mesostructured crystals. The formation routes of the mesostructured crystals are described on the basis of the specific interaction of crystals and organic molecules or matrices. Moreover, specific features of the particular crystalline states are shown with their unique functions originating from the hierarchical architectures.     

Growth and properties of Tm: YAG crystals

The high optical quality Tm: YAG single crystals with dopant concentrations of 2, 4, 8 at % Tm³⁺ ions have been grown by the Czochralski (CZ) method .The segregation coefficients of Tm³⁺ ions in CZ-grown 2, 4, 8 at % doped Tm: YAG crystals determined by ICP-AES method are equal to 0.93, 1.04, 1.10, respectively. The absorption spectra in the range of 190–900 nm and the IR absorption spectra in the range of 1000–4500 cm⁻¹ of the Tm: YAG crystals were also measured at room temperature. The results indicate that Tm: YAG is favorable for laser diode-pumped system, and air annealing can improve the quality of the Tm: YAG crystal.     

Growth and dissolution of BaFCl crystals

Single crystals of BaFCl have been growth by flux technique using BaF₂ and BaCl₂. Etching with formic acid revealed dislocation etch pits on (001) cleavage faces of the crystals, at room temperature. The influence of etching parameters such as undersaturation, temperature and concentration of poison in the etchant is studied. Decreasing the undersaturation of formic acid by reducing the percentage of water and increasing the temperature of the etchant were found not to have any effect on the morphology of etch pits. However, as the CdCl₂ poison concentration is gradually increased, the orientation of the pits change from 〈100〉 to 〈110〉 at high concentration.     

Growth and etching of calcite crystals

Single crystals of calcite (CaCO₃) have been grown by the method employed by GRUZENSKY , using an aquoeus solution of CaCl₂ and a solid (NH₄)₂SO₃, The chemical reaction takes place according to the following equation: CaCl₂ + (NH₄)₂SO₃ CaCO₃ + 2 NH₄Cl The crystals grown by this method are about 0.2 to 0.8 mm in edge dimensions. Synthetic calcite crystals have been cleaved along (100) planes and the cleavage surfaces have been studied by multiple beam interferometry. The interferograms have revealed that the cleavages are quite flat. The cleavage faces have also been chemically etched and the etch patterns studied optically. By etching a cleavage successively for three different periods it was found that the bottoms of the point-bottomed pits follow a linear etch path. By etching a cleavage pair, one face in one etchant and the other face in a different etchant and by comparing the etch patterns produced, before and after polishing a cleavage face it has been shown that the etch pits nucleate at the sites of dislocations in the crystal. The etch patterns have also been compared with those produced on the cleavage faces of natural crystals. The density of dislocations in the syntheitc calctie crystals was generally less than the density of dislocations in the natural calcite crystals. The implications have been discussed.     

Growth of ZnO bulk crystals: A review

A critical review is proposed of the different techniques of bulk growth of ZnO crystals for their use as a substrate in the homoepitaxial growth of this attractive compound. The crystals are assessed from their structural and electrical properties and from the structural properties and purity of homoepitaxial films grown on them by various techniques such as plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy, pulsed laser deposition, magnetron sputtering, chemical vapor deposition, metalorganic chemical vapor epitaxy, liquid phase epitaxy.     

Growth of semiconductor silicon crystals

This paper focuses on the recent developments in Czochralski (CZ) crystal growth of silicon for large-scale integrated circuits (LSIs) and multi-crystalline silicon growth using a directional solidification method for solar cells. Growth of silicon crystals by the CZ method currently allows the growth of high-quality crystals that satisfy the device requirements of LSIs or power devices for electric cars. This paper covers how to obtain high-quality crystals with low impurity content and few point defects. It also covers the directional solidification method, which yields crystals with medium conversion efficiency for photovoltaic applications. We discuss the defects and impurities that degrade the efficiency and the steps to overcome these problems.     

Growth and structure of superconducting FeSe crystals

Superconducting crystals of iron selenide FeSe are grown and their phase and elemental compositions are studied. The structural analysis of individual FeSe_{1 ? x} crystals showed the coexistence of two phases in this compound. The resistivities and magnetic susceptibilities of the crystals are investigated.     

Growth and properties of dyed KDP crystals

Potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KDP) crystals doped with xylenol orange (XO) and methylthymol blue (MTB) are grown from aqueous solutions by the method of solvent evaporation at room temperature under the conditions of natural convection and by the method of temperature lowering. Studied is the influence of the mother solution acidity on the character of the crystal coloration. The color and coloration intensity of the grown crystals are shown to strongly depend on the solution's pH. It is revealed that the crystal habit changes in the presence of organic dyes. The optical transmission spectra and the luminescence spectra of KDP:XO solutions and of the grown crystals are measured. The effect of thermal treatment and UV‐irradiation on the coloration stability of the crystals is studied. It is found that the laser damage threshold in the prismatic impurity rich colored sectors of KDP:XO is the same as that in the prismatic sectors of pure KDP crystals. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Growth and characterization of titanium sesquioxide crystals

Ti₂O₃ crystals are grown by chemical transport reactions as platelets and by the tri-arc method as bulky crystals. The use of TiCl₄ as a transport agent is specifically well suited to this growth, as compared to TeCl₄ in use for the growth of higher oxides. The electrical properties as well as the thermodynamical ones are quite similar for the crystals grown by these two methods. However, definite differences are found in the EPR results. They can be reasonably ascribed to minimal thermal stresses in the crystals grown by chemical transport.     

Growth of GaSe and GaS single crystals

The paper describes principal manipulations to prepare single crystals of GaSe and GaS. A new simple method of synthesis with single‐zone heating furnace is proposed. Growth of crystals was performed by modified Bridgman method with the use of rotating heat field. Raman and optical depth spectra show high structural and optical quality of obtained crystals. (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Growth and analysis of barium-sodium niobate crystals

The conditions of growth, monodomenization, and detwinning are considered in order to obtain optically perfect barium–sodium niobate crystals (BSN). Optical homogeneity and that of chemical composition are investigated. It is shown that possible variations of composition in a crystal's volume are below 1%. Thermal E and optical E_g° widths of the forbidden zone are determined in the absorption spectra.     

Growth and characterization of titanium suboxide crystals

The titanium and vanadium suboxides MO_x (where 1.5 < x < 2 and M is Ti or V) are particularly interesting compounds because many show metal-insulator transitions which result in interesting electrical, magnetic and spectroscopic phenomena. We have grown high purity crystals of the congruently melting compounds Ti₂O₃, Ti₃O₅ and V₂O₃ and mixed compounds using the tri-arc melting technique. Crystals were grown at speeds of 1-1.5 cm/h. The Magneli phases M_nO_2n-1 (n?4) do not melt congruently and therefore we have grown a number of these compounds using chemical vapor transport with TeC1₄ or NH₄C1. Twinned needles typically larger than 1 cm long are grown by pulling transport in 3–5 days. The crystals have been characterized by X-ray diffraction, atomic absorption and gamma-ray activation analysis. In addition, the use of a scanning microcalorimeter made it possible to determine phase transitions on needles weighing as little as 2–10 mg. The stoichiometry was determined using X-ray diffraction, pycnometric density measurements and thermogravimetry.     

Growth and morphology of p-terphenyl single crystals

The results of a preliminary investigation of the growth and morphology of p-terphenyl crystals grown by sublimation and by solvent evaporation methods are reported. It was observed that lozenge–shaped (001) crystal plates are obtained from xylene and benzene solution while dendritic crystals by sublimation. Crystallographic orientation of the plates and microscopic observations of as-grown crystal surfaces are also described.     

Cr3+ luminescence quenching in stoichiometric lithium niobate crystals

Cr³⁺-doped stoichiometric LiNbO₃ crystals were grown and detailed spectroscopic investigations were performed. The samples are characterized by extremely low frequency factor of the luminescence thermal quenching. Its numerical value 1.7 × 10⁸ s⁻¹ is about 10⁴ times lower than in crystals of lithium-aluminum fluorides. Under such conditions, radiative transitions of Cr³⁺ ions compete successfully with non-radiative ones, resulting in a relatively high quantum yield of the broadband luminescence at room temperature. The quenching of luminescence is counteracted by the effect of the dynamic removal of the radiative transition exclusion, and as a result, Cr³⁺ radiative lifetime in LiNbO₃ decreases from 8 to 4 μs when temperature grows up from 77 to 300 K. Therefore quantum yield of the broadband luminescence at room temperature is not 5–10%, as reported previously, but about 30%. The results obtained in the present study show the stoichiometric lithium niobate doped with Cr³⁺ ions to be a potential active media for tunable lasers.     

Growth and properties of single crystals of FeTi

A Single crystal of FeTi with a diameter of ca 34 mm and a length of ca 48 mm has been grown from a quasi-stoichiometric melt with an excess of 1% titanium employing the Bridgman technique. Experiments with the Czochralski technique were not successful. The only crucible material sufficiently resistent against reaction with the melt is electrographite. Elastic and thermoelastic constants were determined by means of ultrasonic methods. FeTi and α iron possess a similar bulk compressibility, thermal expansion, and thermoelastic constants. The longitudinal elastic resistance c₁₁ of FeTi supersedes that of α iron by an amount of ca 30%.     

Growth micromorphology of stearic acid crystals

Growth and micromorphology of stearic acid crystals grown by solvent evaporation method has been studied. The effect of the solvent and the rate of evaporation of the solvent on the growth micromorphology has been investigated. The formation of spherulitic growth features, rhombic platelets of B- and C forms having growth spirals associated with solution channels and twinned crystals involving B-B, C-C, and B-C forms is observed. The complexity of the twins involving the B- and C forms is discussed.